Robert Altman presents teen angst with a twist. Based on characters from National Lampoon Magazine, O.C. and Stiggs aren't your average unhappy teenagers. They not only despise their suburban surroundings, they plot agains... more &raquot it. They seek revenge against the middle class Schwab family, who embody all they detest: middle class. In a film armed with vicious satire and hilarious surprises, suburbia will never be the same.&laquo less

Movie Reviews

I will leave it to the critics to comment on the film itself

E. BJORNSSON | Iceland | 03/13/2006

(1 out of 5 stars)

"All I want to say is that I can barely believe that no one hascommented on the atrocious transfer on the DVD. It looks likea bad video on a TV screen glimpsed through a dirty window. Itis not even "barely watchable" - it is utterly unwatchable.

This may not be one of Altman's best, but surely it deservesbetter treatment than this, if only for those of us who wantto be able to view this auteur's complete body of work. Whoeverproduced this DVD ought to be ashamed of themselves.

I have bought both the US and UK disks in the hope that oneof them might be better than the other. No such luck - theyare both the same crappy junk. Money down the drain.

We've been had. And the thought of somebody actually makingmoney off selling this inferior product is distressing."

Repeat Viewings Bring Out the Brilliance

Chris Collier | Portland, OR USA | 01/13/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"O.C. and Stiggs is a pure gem. The other reviews give you background, but what needs to be emphasized is that this film is filled with Robert Altman's special layered dialogue. O.C. and Stiggs can be watched a dozen times and still the viewer will notice some little tidbit of cleverness that wasn't obvious the first time. Do yourself a favor and buy this film so you can watch it again whenever the mood strikes you."

Obscure Anarchist fun

Ryan M Clark | Santa Ana, CA United States | 05/26/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I jumped on the bandwagon late for this one with my first viewing being on late night TV sometime during an extended stint of unemployement in 2001. One line describing the film on digital cable had me immediately hooked: "2 Teenagers commit anarchy in Arizona". I gently nursed a half empty bottle of bourbon while enjoying this screen gem, then taped it right over the '89 NBA finals game between the Lakers and the Pistons without looking back.

Maybe the context of my viewing pleasure created my love for this SEEMINGLY god awful movie, maybe it was the quirky directing by Altman and the meaningless direction of the script. Some say this movie has no order, but that is exactly the premise of the "original" O.C. and Stiggs, from National Lampoon, which I have read.

Being a lush I was able to identify with Mrs. Schwab especially, her antics with her hidden alcohol behind the Senior Schwab's back created several humorous situations. Paul Dooley's dialogue as Randall Schwab Sr. is precisely delivered, and he created a movie character I will never forget. The 2 faceless actors that played the title characters could have been anyone; their careers didn't amount to anything. But their casual attitudes while wreaking havoc on God fearing Republicans embodied the original story perfectly and created an ambience that can only be relived on late night T.V.

Dennis Hopper's role is extremely cliche, humorous due to his Apocalypse Now role that it obviously parallels. His insanity permeates the atmosphere and creates more fuel for the anarchist fire.

Like it or not, although convoluted, this movie is true art. Hardcore Altman fans might not appreciate it because it is such a far throw from his other ventures, but it could only be done by him. If it EVER comes out on DVD (I have already petitioned for it in writing) I am buying 5 copies and giving it to everyone I know for Christmas."

Poor transfer, weak movie

Art | 08/09/2007

(2 out of 5 stars)

"It's a little shocking to see that studios are still releasing non-anamorphic transfers of widescreen movies this late in the game. But I suppose with this movie, it was non-anamorphic or nothing at all, since this doesn't seem like a DVD that's likely to sell millions of copies. I assume that the transfer comes from an earlier laserdisc version or something.

At any rate, it's nice to be able to see Altman's full widescreen images, even in a poor transfer, but the truth is that this is probably his worst movie. He takes the unredeemable sociopathic dirtbags from the original National Lampoon stories and tries to transform them into the suburban 80s version of Hawkeye and Trapper John. The original O.C. & Stiggs didn't care whether Schwab had cancelled someone's insurance unfairly; they just hated him because he had a funny name.

The transformation of O.C. & Stiggs into "heroes" severely waters-down the original stories, whereas the weakness of the original material gives Altman virtually nothing to work with. We're left with a sorry mish-mash of aborted social commentary and truly awful attempts at "zany" humor (e.g. "boing" sound effects whenever someone gets stuck by a cactus, or the musical spoof of the "Pink Panther Theme" when the boys are sneaking into Schwab's back yard).

This gets one extra star because even the worst of Altman's work is worth a look to fans, but this is truly one of the most misbegotten movies that director ever made."

Can't believe this was Altman

iliketowatch | 08/14/2008

(1 out of 5 stars)

"Nashville, Come back to the five and dime, The Player, MASH How could the man behind those be behind this?

A vapid, obnoxious, exploitative teen movie without any of the charms of the genre.

Poorly transferred too. I watched it through to the end in disbelief and wasted 90 odd minutes of my life.